Back from a long hiatus

[bnord]

Welcome to the forum, and glad you joined. That stand that only looks plenty sturdy but I love the sleek minimalistic design

 

[Big Smelly fish]

 

[G Santana]

Welcome to the Reef and back to the obsession

 

[Tuan’s Reef]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

 

[Jimbhoy13]

Welcome to R2R and back to the salty world.

 

[BluTang85]

Hello! and welcome to Reef2Reef

 

[Fish Think Pink]

So, it seems like I'm back from a long hiatus. I had 3 reef tanks during college all the way up to about 10 years ago. What happened 10 years ago? I got married, had 2 kids, moved 2 times, etc. And, somewhere along the way, I gave up the reefing hobby. But, recently I've had the itch to start up a tank. So, about 2 weeks ago I bought the Aqueon 14 gal cube during the sale at Petco. Since then... I bought a 20-pound bag of live sand, and 40 pounds of base rock (planning to build my aquascape with 15-20 pounds and I'll keep the rest in storage) and started building my stand (see attached pic). I still need to build a door and possibly a drawer for the stand, pick up an RO-DI unit, some salt, a lighting setup (possibly noopsyche K7 mini), maybe a skimmer (not too sure), and some other stuff along the way when needed. Just wanted to say hi to the R2R community.

PS: The stand is built out of 1/2 baltic birch and the top is the exact dimensions of the 14 gal cube. I left the inside the raw birch color and I stained the outside in espresso. Waiting on the stain to dry then I'll put about 5 layers of poly.

PPS: Does anyone know how heavy a fully loaded 14 gal cube will weigh? I tested my build with 200 pounds overnight and it was rock solid. Just wanted to make sure this would be enough.

Welcome! Glad you joined. Defer to others on weight estimates.

CONGRATULATIONS on already having your Build Thread Badge!! WAHOO!!! YOU ARE ROCKING IT !!!

This might help you find people local to you:

Local Reef Club Discussion

Looking for some locals to share frags and info with? This is the place! Find a local club that meets in your area! If you want to add your club just contact us.

www.reef2reef.com

This is a good reference book type online article I still review:

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium

This article was sponsored by @MarineDepot at www.marinedepot.com. Introduction The marine environment is one of the most complex systems on the planet. The aquarium you are about to set up is only a tiny sliver of the vast ocean, but it is no...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[Retro Heat]

Welcome to the Salty Crew. Stand will easily hold the weight of the tank. looks really nice as well.

Thanks @Dreminon Yup, tested the stand at 300 pounds and it didn't even flinch. Working on the aquascape now so I can get the salt water flowing soon. =)

 

[Retro Heat]

Welcome to the forum, and glad you joined. That stand that only looks plenty sturdy but I love the sleek minimalistic design

Thanks @bnord I try to build all my furniture. And, I'm tending to go towards the more midcentury modern clean look lately. I'm not the greatest woodworker but I'm starting to know my way around my table saw. =)

BTW: what's that crazy looking animal in the pic?

 

[Jeffcb]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!!!

 

[kingoftheHiLLpeople]

Welcome!!!

 

[ScubaShane]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!